Women writers from varying cultural, historical and geographical contexts have used language and literature to communicate their experiences. We will discuss the conceptual and material conditions of a woman’s life that offer a better understanding of how gender and power enable us to act as agents of change. While focusing on contemporary writing through a variety of genres, we will also explore earlier work that encompasses similar themes and ideas. Writers from diverse backgrounds and perspectives include Sappho, George Eliot, Virginia Woolf, Kate Chopin, Sylvia Plath, Adrienne Rich, Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison, Jhumpa Lahiri, Joy Harjo, and Rebecca Solnit. Textbook: The Norton Anthology of Literature By Women, Third Edition, Volume 2.